It was no ordinary meeting for Georgia’s typically placid election board. On Monday, the state panel met for its second all-day session to discuss new election rules. Tensions flared, with accusations flying between members, while the nonpartisan chairman repeatedly called for order. The five-member board had convened to review last week’s 3-2 vote approving a rule that requires counties to hand count ballots on election night and afterward.
Georgia Could Once Again
In the past few months, the panel’s new Republican members have passed a series of changes into law raising concerns. This pivotal battleground state may find itself at the center of confusion once again on and after Election Day. Already reeling from narrowly losing Georgia in 2020, Donald Trump and his allies filed lawsuits and spread unfounded claims of election fraud. At one point, Trump even pressured Georgia’s Republican Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger, to “find 11,780 votes”—the exact number he lost by in the state.
Trump is now under indictment in Georgia for allegedly trying to backdate the vote count there with the aim of overturning that defeat. The rancor simmered at the state election board ever since, where Democratic member Sarah Tindall Ghazal went so far as to say her Republican colleagues were motivated by “far-right-wing beliefs.” Republican member Janice Johnston fired back, saying her character was being “assassinated.”
Following the hotly contested elections in 2020, Georgia has become a battleground for voting rights and election integrity debates. The new voting laws passed by the state legislators have been criticized by various advocacy groups and Democrats who assert that these laws are unfavorably affecting more minority voters in the state and place undue barriers to voting. Proponents of the laws counter that they are in effect to uphold the security of the process and rebuild public confidence in voting.
Needless to say, the political situation in Georgia becomes even more complex with high-profile candidates. Incumbent Republican Governor Brian Kemp has many opponents within his party, and the Democrats are also eager to seize the opportunity presented by any dissatisfaction among voters. Lastly, the two U.S. Senate seats in Georgia, which have now become crucial battlegrounds, will be hotly contested during the upcoming elections.
And with the prospect of legal disputes, there is also, of course, uncertainty. Following the 2020 general election, many lawsuits were filed in courts challenging voting procedures and ballot counting. The history made in those cases would likely continue into the next election with similar court challenges against the newly enacted voting laws throughout Georgia and other States where such laws were enacted.
National political figures know how important Georgia is and will devote their attention and resources to the state. Campaign rallies, advertisements, and grassroots efforts are heating up as candidates seek to sway votes. Georgia has a diverse population of young voters as well as minorities, making them crucial to reach out to during an election.
The election date draws closer, and here are the stakes:. The outcome in Georgia might not only determine races vital at the state level, but also have a decisive impact on the balance of power in Congress. So it stands to reason that Georgia will continue as a swing battleground, grabbing national attention once again. Voters in the Peach State will be at the heart of a political storm, with their choices shaping the future of American politics well beyond state lines.
Sowing Seeds of Doubt
The new rule to count ballots by hand in Georgia vote follows several weeks of opposition from local election officials. According to reports by the BBC, poll supervisors in Georgia consider that the rule could cause issues on and after Election Day, which may include delays in reporting the results as well as possible human errors. The new measure requires poll workers to hand count ballots on election night—or, in some cases, the following day—to ensure that the number of paper ballots matches the machine-tabulated count.
‘Partisan Football’
This isn’t the first time new voting rules have stirred controversy during an election year. Four years ago, Democrats sued after expanding the use of ballot drop boxes in Wisconsin and expanding voting by mail in Pennsylvania. What makes Georgia unique is that the criticism is coming from both sides of the aisle. Georgia’s State Election Board comprises three Republicans, one Democrat, and a chairman picked by the Republican governor.
Historically, the role of the board has been procedural and nonpartisan. But in the wake of the 2020 election, the board has become a political lightning rod. “Now, the job has turned into something like partisan football,” said Gowri Ramachandran, director of elections and security at the Brennan Center for Justice, a liberal nonprofit.
Prior to 2020, the secretary of state led the state board, but fellow Republicans bounced Raffensperger after the November election—a move critics decry as payback for his efforts to defend the election results. Since then, several Trump-aligned Republicans have been added to the board and now fill a majority: Ms. King, Ms. Johnston, and former Republican state senator Rick Jeffares.
In recent meetings, the state board’s three Republican members have advocated for s
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